Eat, sleep, breathe, drink, Arsenal

I have come to the conclusion that Christmas week is the fastest week of them all. Four days with the grand’holics have gone in the blink of an eye. When we completed our last fixture at Wigan we were third in the Premier League. Now we are seventh. Thank you Aslef members. I hope you enjoyed your paid holiday.

Those unfortunate enough to follow me on Twitter will know I am already in the mood for the home game with Newcastle United. Last night I stumbled upon the highlights video of our 5-3 home win in 1976 on YouTube. The memories flooded back. I was at the back of the Clock End that day with the old man and a couple of his friends. We were surrounded by Geordies, but celebrated our goals as they celebrated theirs. That day they brought more to Highbury than I can ever remember us taking up there. They all wanted to see Supermac on his first appearance against the club where he had been idolised. His hat-trick, and the mixed reception it received at our end, will long live in the memory.

The ensuing thirty-six years have been kinder to us than the Geordies, it is fair to say, but there was precious little between us last season. Five points eventually separated us in third from them in fifth place. One of the surprises of this term has been their failure to kick on from that solid platform, although injuries have had quite an effect on their season to date. Anybody who saw them almost get a result at Old Trafford on Boxing Day will know they still have plenty of punch in attack, but will offer up chances at the other end.

The visitors have lost Williamson from that match through suspension, and Anita has joined the lengthening list of walking wounded that includes Gutierrez, Cabaye, Ben Arfa, and Taylor. The combative Tiote returns after suspension and it could be interesting when he and Jack Wilshere have designs on the ball at the same time. Despite his public declaration that we are not pursuing Demba Ba, I’m sure Arsene will have had a very close look at the Newcastle striker who seems destined to depart St James Park sooner rather than later. Dodgy knees or not, he may provide an option in an area where we are not currently blessed with riches.

For Arsenal, we are close to a clean bill of health, although Abou Diaby and Andre Santos will not return to training until next week. Tomas Rosicky and Olivier Giroud are added to those who scrapped for a win at Wigan. I suspect the latter will get a start.

Surprisingly, given their spirited display in Manchester, Newcastle are without an away win this season, and with just six points gained from their last nine fixtures the bookies rate them no better than sixes or sevens to win this one. Mindful of the tough time we had pipping them 2-1 in the corresponding fixture last season I am tempted by another close, but perhaps more open encounter. 3-2 to Arsenal is a very tempting 29/1 with Gunners Gaming. I am definitely having a little bit of that. The only thing that could scupper the bet is if Tim Krul is allowed by Chris Foy to waste as much time as he did last season, when the ball appeared to be in play for only about seventeen of the ninety minutes. That’s what it felt like, anyway.

The late kick-off allows plenty of times for friends old and new to congregate in the fine taverns around the Grove and get the vocal chords lubricated. You know three thousand Geordies will give their side strong backing. Hopefully we will respond and create the sort of atmosphere that a meeting between two old rivals deserves. In 170 previous meetings, the first being a 2-2 draw in 1893, we have both won 66. Let’s hope we will be celebrating having taken a slender advantage after the match.

If you are going I hope to see you in the usual place. If you are watching elsewhere there should be plenty of good streams available as the game is being broadcast here by ESPN. Unfortunately the quality of the commentary and punditry won’t match that of the pictures, but that is the nature of the broadcaster, unfortunately. Them having the live broadcast and Match of the Day with the highlights package is about as poor as it gets. Never mind.

Great article mate, from a newcastle fan, going to be a close one tommorow (hopefully), but i do think you guys will be too strong for us with all our injuries, we just arent the team we where last year as of yet, but cant fault the lads effort, especially the performance against utd, hoping we get that win tommorow obviously, but going to be very tough, think 3-2 you the gooners would be a very tidy bet. As for Ba, as a newcastle fan im sort of at terms with the fact he wuill more than likely leave in january, but weather he will go to a club in england im not too sure, he’s a great player, but not the best technically, i wouldnt class him as your typical arsenal striker, and for the money he will cost and the demands he wants i really dont see mr Wenger paying out, hes 27, wont pass a medical, the clause is 7.5 million, but there are added agents fees of about 2-3 million on top of that, plus he wants a 4 or 5 year deal on 90k a week, and seeing as Walcott cant even get that, i struggle to see Ba getting it, he may perhaps go to tottenham or chelsea, but he wouldnt be gaurunteed a start at those clubs, and i think only chelsea would pay him those wages, but will have to see, im more optimistic about the replacement we are going to buy for him 😉

Well fellow drinkers 4 me its been 70 years on this earth today and enjoying my 2nd party to celebrate
unfortunately cant stay in England for the match tomorrow but going to watch munster ulster in Limerick instead

I do like Ba hes in my FFL team, but if AW says he is not
for us who am I to argue

Those who are going to the match enjoy a good clean win – Pardue out
,

Good stuff guv, enjoy your day tomorrow, I forsee a cagey affair unless we can get off the mark quickly. I thought that the Toon were very good on the break against Manure and were unlucky to come away from Old Toilet pointless.

Here’s hoping that our midweek break has done us some good and we come roaring out the blocks tomorrow evening.

‘Holic- Good day. I was at that Newcastle match in 1976 as a young student . I remember I sat on the Upper West Side ( a flatmate father’s season ticket) and the playing surface was slippery and I froze on the train ride back to Sussex. Thanks for the memory!

Pace. Pace. I want pace in tomorrow’s lineup. The Toon were unlucky on Boxing Day. I hope they shot their wad and feel a bit knackered after that effort and result. 3-2, 2-1, 1-0. I’ll take any of them.

Holic, Some interesting background there. 66 wins apiece, preceded by a draw. Talk about pressure! 🙂 Shame some of their key players will be missing tomorrow. Every fixture we play now is a warm up for Munich 🙂 Like all holics, have been yearning to see us play again, and it should be one heck of a game ! 🙂

From ‘“On Me Head Son” Santi Lights Up The Mad Stad’ to this Bar Post, I’ve enjoyed every post Holic and almost every drink (I’ve read every single one since I became a regular August/September 2011 😛 ), please do keep it up one and all 🙂

TW, long posts? Tomes? Pfffffttt! 8) Come off it son, leave it to the pros 😉 And if you don’t want my title, fine by me! Who’d wanna give up freedom of the bar anyway 🙂
Glad you’re back and that the wake went well for you and your family.

NorCal, on the job, my manager gave me this current week off from Sunday, even then its taken me 4 days to catch up to the Bar and Life in General.

Ollie, didn’t touch a drop of it (alcohol) over Christmas 😕

PaGooner, thanks for the mention and a belated welcome mate 🙂

For all who have been asking about my absence from the bar, NorCal was right, “Winds phone didn’t last thru the night following his gospels.”
Got a new Blackberry (same model) from Geek Squad (they cover Best Buy’s insurance claimants), those idiots sent back the same faulty Lithium-Ion Battery though (oy vey X_X), still prone to shutting off and reverting to an all white screen when you reach about 30% or use the internet and listen to music at the same time so I haven’t bought a new 6 month Internet/E-Mail/BBM Booster (first wages today! 😀 ), won’t be consistently on as I can only get on here when I’m on a PC like now or when I connect through Wi-Fi only (not turning off the Mobile Network when I surf the net on the Smartphone without the Booster obliterates my credit, down to £0.74 as of late 😥 )
I’ve got exams in January, gutted that I can’t go to City at Home on Sunday the 13th to catch up with Lars (Snowy?), Holic and Dr Z himself along with any other Holics going at the Tollie but its Sandwiched between 2 Exams on the Friday before and 1 on the Monday after the game out of 9 exams total, would be suicidal for my grades so I made the smart choice.

As the wages come in over the next few weeks I’ll hope to make it to Bayern at Home for the 1st Leg, that would be immense, especially if BtM was making an appearance 🙂

Excellent drinks one and all, thanks for the shoutouts and special mentions from what I can recall from my backdrinking go to to Steve T’s account of his away day with his kids (haven’t met them but if NorCal’s kids are a guide to go by then I can bet my last Pound that yours are great as well 🙂 ) and Dr C’s Patient Story 😆 Bit of a Lad thing to do 😛

Arsene Speak is getting even harder to translate but I don’t think he was ruling out a move for Ba,just trying not to wind Pardew up. I have to say the familiar signs of indecision and negativity about deals are there even before the window opens but i may be wrong.
any Arsenal game is very hard to predict but we should be considerably fresher than them tomorrow and one hopes we have enough to beat them.
let’s hope 2013 is a better year for Gooners everywhere but I say this more in hope than expectation.

Great write up Holic. I’m a bit wary of this game but I think the rest we had will show in the second half.

As for Ba, I think it’s imperative to sign David Villa. Enough of this 31 year old crap.

Squillaci was signed at the age of 30 to a 3 year contract and no one cared at the time because we had a pressing need at CB at the time.

We have a pressing need at Striker now and he’s by far the best we can get in this window. By far.

He is so good that he will immediately become the second best striker in the prem after the Dutchman.

We finally have money, lets fucking use it. £16m for a player like that even coming off an injury is nothing.

How many here think that Bac demands a fee of at least £10m? Well he’s after two leg breaks and he’s a defender, a position that is traditionally cheaper than forward. Villa, is not only Spain’s top goal scorer but a 2 time Euro champion, a WC champion, and a CL champion.

£16m is a fucking gift.

Sign him up!!!!

P.s: I don’t think Ba suits us anyways. I think we need a striker like Villa, Adrian, or Chicharito.

Great review as always ‘Holic. Not sure a game as open as 3-2 is likely as, although the game at Old Strap-On was one of those affairs, we, ironically, seem to actually be able to defend a little bit! I am more inclined to think that a hard fought 1-0 is the sort of result to expect. The thing that worries me is that if the “other Arsenal” turn up on the day we may be looking down the wrong end of that scoreline.

Trev – I know this will sound like an “Old Wives Remedy”, mainly because it is, but try grating an inch cube of fresh ginger with the skin on, two tablespoons of honey and the juice of two lemons in boiling water. Give it a good mix and get it ALL down you as hot as you can (yes, that nasty ginger too!) Trust me, taken once every 2 hours it is like Beechams+ and REALLY does the trick.

Agreed, not the yummiest thing you could be guzzling, but I promise it will improve your chances of getting some proper guzzling done tomorrow!

Hope you give it a try and hope it helps as much as it has me over the years.

Not at the game tomorrow. A guy who sits in front of me is away over Christmas. A quick conversation with the lad I go with and it was decided that we would have his seat for both games. I would have my pals seat for the West Ham game and he would have mine for the geordies. This would enable both of us to take both of our kids to a game over the holiday period. Unfortunately I had clearly not taken into account the ASLEF factor. So I will hopefully be in a pub somewhere watching.

Another tricky one to call. Again it will depend on which Arsenal turns up. I do think that Giroud may well start. Apart from that, not too many changes. I am very much with Zico though. Let’s just get the 3 points and we can worry about how we hot them later.

In other news the BBC are reporting that Pat Rice is to be awarded the MBE. Assuming that is correct then that is very well deserved. A true football man and a genuine Arsenal man through and through. Pat, I raise a glass in your honour.

I so hope that is not another monumental PR gaff from the club. You would sincerely hope that with statements as bold as that, that deals are all but done. Although, this is The Arsenal press office we are talking about.

The Telegraph correspondent is also predicting a 3-2 Arsenal win so if you’re going to lay your wager on that scoreline it may be best to get it done with soon, before the whole planet has done the same.

I agree with Snir about David Villa, if we can get him to sign for that kind of money I’d say go for it. Yes, it could all go tits up a la Squillaci, but the potential rewards are huge becuase he has never been a player who built his game on being a fast runner. He is a goal poacher and he is very much used to playing against packed defenses, something I don’t think Demba Ba is. Yeah, Villa ain’t playing much at Barca but he has that bloke Mossy or whatever his name is to compete with. Don’t know that much about him to be honest, but I hear he has scored quite a few goals recently.

Nani, zico? Oh, please no!

As for the game today? Well, anyone’s guess is as good as mine. We should win it of course, especially considering their injuries. But we’ll probably need some patience, by all logical reasoning they should tire a lot quicker than we do so make sure we make them chase the ball as much as possible from the start of the game. Then we should be able to reap the rewards from about the 60th minute and on.

In any case, as usual I wish I could be there at the Tollie and then at the ground but hit just hit me this morning that it’s only a little over two weeks until I will be there again which cheered me up considerably!

“Why would we want Fellaini banned for more than three games? Everton are a top-six team, so not a rival of ours, but they are playing teams like West Brom, West Ham and Wigan, so we’d much prefer Fellaini to be playing in those.”

So I checked the league table which shows Everton and Stoke 5 points apart. I considered for a moment whether P**is has no ambition to surpass a club 5 points away from Stoke with half the season left to play, but quickly dismissed the ridiculous notion, settling on the conclusion (once again) that a disingenuous twat is exactly what the man is. For the record, Wigan are 8 points removed from Stoke, West Ham and West Brom both stand 5 points removed from Stoke.

OK, I’ve only seen about ten minutes of it but why are Sunderland never this rubbish when we play against them? It’s 0-0 but it won’t stay that way for very long unless Sunderland get their act together.

Ha Ha Lars! 8ball, Fraid you lost me @ 76! But I’ve just woke up 🙂 Delia, you don’t fool us…you are a party girl 🙂 Trev, hope you pass the test. What you need is a nurse 🙂 Wonderful, Bale gets a yellow 🙂

Hey all, guerilla-ing my way here from train, luckily have power socket next to my seat so made a wifi hotspot out of my phone and connected on laptop. The mobile net is not fast enough for any stream but should allow me to watch drinks here and follow the game somehow:) come on lads!

As the Beeb put it – “Wenger is still struggling with his coat. Thankfully, Walcott has plenty of zip for the two of them.”

Having that said, I do think we give them to much time to pick out an early cross at the moment. Got a feeling we will be punished for that, especially when we don’t have Mertesacker in the centre of the defence. Some more pressure on the ball when they have it in the middle of the field, please!

I think with theo up top we feel like we are only a counter attacking team. We are not controlling the midfield or pressing up the pitch but rather sitting back and hoping to spring forward. The problem is that we need to press the ball to keep our energy up. The whole team looks sluggish.

It looks like we need someone to take the bull by the horns in midfield, and I think Rosicky could be the man. Podolski-Walcott connection looked excellent on the goal and it almost clicked at least two other times. We need a lift because they were on the up since the goal. Come on Arsenal.

french tele giving Jack a hard time for their goal.His position was right in front of the Chesney side of the goal .If you build a wall ,you’re asking the free kick taker to place the ball the other side for the goalie,so why have a player divert it back to the other side.They have even compared it to nasty Nasri against United??? What do they expect we leave the area free and when the ball comes towards Jack he ducks,as there is no other player to hide behind.

😀 hehe ..in last set of drinks I said that I will prolly miss the game but will be okay with 5-2 scoreline like during the last match I missed, as in the game against neighbors ..but I will gladly settle with 6-3 too 😛 cant wait for highlights!

ABB, love the optimism, but our fullbacks will need to play much much better to worry Bayern. After the 4th goal Newcastle gave up. It was one way traffic. Fun when it’s Arsenal but not as indicative of our overall squad.

I do wish OG had gotten his hat trick too. His movement actually caused Newcastle more problems than Theo’s did most of the game. I know they were tired at that point but he gave them fits.

Brilliant stuff. Midfield were great, full backs poor but looked like we could score at will. OG was excellent when he came on. As for theo, offer him the 100k and see what he does. Sauvignon blanc tonight and maybe a wee rum or two.

Wilshere and Poldi did very well. Giroud was unplayable when he came on.

But Theo was just unbelievable. His first goal was superbly taken. And despite some bad passes in the second half, he once again proved he is irresistible when in the mood. TH14 must be a heck of a teacher.

What now from Wenger and the Board. Theo’s done the talking on the pitch, not to forget Wenger has done his bit too playing him upfront. Sign him is all I can say. How many players can score a hattrick and an assist in the PL?

And if Walcott really doesn’t want to sign, then he’s surely let so many people down. Fingers crossed it would not come to that.

Great enthusiasm from all the players too. This is a morale boosting win, if ever there’s one.

Good job by Theo. he is a better striker than Gerv by a mile. He does give us a different option. I do hope he signs. He gives us a automatic starter either on the wing or down the middle. Wasn’t sure if I would ever say that.

Of all the quality goals, loved Giroud’s first the most because of the simplicity of the movement and also the fact we don’t tend to score many like that. Theo’s cross was really excellent. If Giroud’s third went in it would have been a rare combination hattrick — head, right foot, left foot. Nice cameo that.

Our midfield didn’t really play that well for much of the match — losing possession, not pressing enough, lack of organization — and Santi was having trouble organizing attacks. For all of Santi’s great qualities, he doesn’t orchestrate attacks as much as we need someone to. I think TR7, when fit, is a better fulcrum of our attacking play and I would like to see him and Santi together with Santi on the wing against more disciplined and dogged defenses where pace alone wouldn’t cup open the defense and more creativity would be needed.

Thought Poldi did very well, always upping the tempo and trying to be direct. Ox, though drifting too much in, had a good game as well.

Sagna and Gibbs both had one of their worst matches, defensively, in recent times. Sagna looks to have lost some pace, and Gibbs has unfortunately caught the Clichy virus of concentration lapse.

good morning, holics. that was a frustrating, theatrical, and ultimately enjoyable game to watch. i sooo wanted the HFB to get his hat trick, a few inches lower and it’s in. theo was largely cake, great goals; his assist for OG was the touch of the game, except for OG’s actual header.

Sagna looked jaded, almost uninterested. If anyone, he deserves to be cut some slack though. Gibbs also had lapses in defensive concentration, but what was great to see was him running up the pitch the next minute, playing Walcott for his 2nd goal. Wenger would’ve congratulated his mental strength.

It was also pleasing to see OG scoring for fun. He should really save his hattrick for FC Bayern 😀

Those who don’t think Theo is worth £100k a week are probably right but the club fucked up by letting him get to the final year, because any offer they make him will have to take into account the massive signing on fee he would get if he went to another club.

£75k a week and a £10m signing on fee over five years is about £113k a week, so… if they can’t find a figure about £75k they can live with, they’re mental IMO

Other than the finishing — which was always there but mostly inconsistent — there is one more aspect of his game where Theo has improved tremendously: the ability to take on defenders. Quick feet were never his thing but I was impressed by a few close controls, especially for the blocked shot before the third goal and the third goal.

If Theo keeps up like this, and doesn’t renew his contract, I can see at the end of the season he may be coveted by Barca who may want to have an alternative plan with Villa aging. I know it sounds ridiculous, but with his pace and finishing he would be considered a very good alternative to have.

Nonny,
I agree on both points as far as Theo. His past slow progression does not warrant 100k a week. However, he has actually shown a steady improvement in the last 2 years. I still don’t rate him as 100k week kind of player but if you throw in the Boseman piece I think someone else will.
As far as letting the contract get to this point, I think some players take that gamble of not signing early for this very reason. Theo has made himself a much more valuable player this year, I think he felt the worst he could do is sign at 75k for us, even if he got injured I think he felt that that would always be there. So why not wait. He was in a no lose situation.
I still don’t know if the club will pay him, I have come to the belief that they should based on his development the last 2 years and the PR nightmare if they don’t.

But seriously, is 4-4-2 not just screaming out to be played again? We look like we could carve the Italian defence of the 70’s apart when we have two up front. So many more options for Santi, LJW and Arteta, not to mention so many more goals!

One little worry…Are we becoming Keegan’s Newcastle?! You know, let them get a few but at least get a few too? We certainly seem to be a better side when we are trying to score than when we are trying to pass the ball around aimlessly for 88 minutes of the 90 and DEFINITELY better at attacking than defending.

Anyway, so much for my 1-0! Muppet!

Agree with whoever said that Ba could add something, but imagine what he could add if he had Walcott alongside him and not outside him. Same as Olly G, how great does he look when he and Theo get close? Fuck it, he always looks great!

Second-hand plimsolls…BtM, you are one funny mofo!

Love you all as ever, glad to feel like this about the team and not like “that”.

January still needs to be a time for some serious work but it is a far better situation to be in than it could have been and I am as thrilled to bits as any of us.

Not seen any of the game. Just seen the score. Absolutely bizarre. I will watch all later.

Time to give Theo what he wants. I agree about his form of recent years does not warrant such a deal but his current form and the fact we had not sorted this earlier means that we have put ourselves in a far weaker bargaining position. Time to eat humble pie and be done with it.

N7 – Thank you sir. Truth be told I have always WANTED Arsene to get this right, just didn’t see his policies and this squad actually doing it.

Two swallows, or four wins on the trot, do not make a summer, but if the transfer window is used well, including getting Theo’s hand on a pen in the hallowed halls, we will be somewhere near a decent chance of the season that BtM is – and in his defence, always has been – predicting.

We know what we need, Arsene SURELY knows what we need and, I think, with M’Vila worth a gamble at about 8m, Ba at 7.5m and a sneaky chance of pulling off the transfer surprise of the window (cannot say any more than that as I could end up looking like a total twat if it doesn’t happen. I haven’t seen it reported in any real seriousness anywhere and it is a long shot at best BUT I will say that iPod could find himself as the other centre forward of the four if it does happen) we could well have EXACTLY what we need to get that one trophy that BtM believes we will.

Obviously the league appears to be a long way out of sight for this year and the transfers that we make will need to bed in VERY quickly to give us a fighting chance against a Bayern side that will NOT let us put 7 past them over two games, let alone in one, so the ECL could well be out of sight too in the near future.

So, that leaves the FA Cup. What odds pulling off that one as the first trophy in 8 years as well as it being the last one we got our grubby mitts on?

Pretty good if we can keep this run going, get the necessary transfer business done, sign Theo up and change the formation…

Roberto, one thing about being a Gooner is you have to learn when it is time to climb down off the horse and join the party. Humble pie eating time it is not, we all know that things are still far from perfect, but at least, and for the first time in a long time, we seem to have a team with a bit of backbone, a bit of spirit and, dare I say it, I think I dare, mentul strengfff!

Enjoy the success, hate the failures, sing for the team whenever you can.

Oh, and remember…There actually IS only one Arsene Wenger, for better or worse!

And yes, SteveT, the humble pie eating SHOULD be done regarding Theo. How long did we have to wait to see Wenger give him his shot in the centre?! Know Arsene needs to put the dotted line under some serious digits and promises and get Theodore to put the rest of his rather amusing name down there.

Arsene knows, but sometimes I worry that he actually refuses to admit it!

Ramsey has been given a lot of stick and him being subbed on when we are defending a lead has been questioned, but who was it that tracked back and won the ball and started the attack leading to our fifth goal? Yes, Aaron Ramsey.

Shit defending three times could have cost us but bloody hell, didn’t the lads show some… mental strength? We kept going and were not very good at all in the first half, but in the end it came together really, really well.

To get the few negatives out of the way, I must say I am increasingly hesitant of extending Sagna’s contract at all. He seems to have lost that half a yard of pace, he was taken to the cleaners for both their second and third goals and was a bit off on several other occasions and that has happened increasingly often this season, it seems as if he isn’t quite as quick on the first few yards as he used to be and when you lose that you’re pretty much done as a full-back at this level. Don’t get me wrong, I love him as a player but he is 30 next year and maybe the double leg breaks have robbed him of that burst of speed a bit prematurely?

But let’s not dwell on that – Threeo scored a hattrick despite actually not playing that well in most other respects until the latter parts of the match, which in itself may sound like criticism but is in fact intended to be the exact opposite. He kept working hard and was rewarded for his effortsand the cross for the first of Giroud’s goals was magnificent.

But Theo, I’m sorry – your performance, despite your hat trick, was overshadowed by Olivier Giroud. Sure, the Newcastle back four were tiring but he bullied them all on his own. Did he lose any aerial duels? As good as Theo was, Giroud gave him a masterclass in how to bring the ball down and shielding it until others have made their way up the pitch. It was only about 20 minutes, but what a 20 minutes it was. Magninficent, and two well-taken goals to cap it off and what a shame he hit the post to prevent him from getting a hat trick too.

Was the late burst of goals down to fatigue with the Newcastle players? To a certain extent, yes. But it was also down to us finally letting go of that sodding handbrake and never taking our foot of the gas (blimey, I just realised I did a double-header of automotive clichés there!) and this is something we need to keep doing.

Anything more to say? Probably, but now I am going to crack open a beer and enjoy the fact that at least we ended 2012 on a high. Let’s worry about Southampton away, Swansea away and whatever lies ahead at a later point. Beer-drinking and back-drinking may now commence!

Don’t worry mate, I am almost EXACTLY where you are, but I am happy to knee-jerk in either direction whenever required!

Although, to argue with you a little, I love the current strip but that nasty away thing is a just a fucking disgrace!

Nobody here should question your “Goonerness”, that would be just silly and, even when I am at my most furious and depressed with this great club, the majority here engage in reasonable debate with me and an even greater majority understand that blind faith is just that…Blind.

We are all Gooners here, that is what makes it such a great place to be.

Question everything…that is what makes a football club a great club and a virtual bar and great virtual bar.

ManU after 19 games last season: 49 goals scored.
ManU after 19 games this season: 50 goals scored.

Arsenal after 19 games last season: 35 goals scored.
Arsenal after 18 games this season: 39 goals scored.

So ManU have paid £24m for one goal so far. We got £24m and have scored more in less games.

It is also well worth noting that with one game less than most teams, only ManU have scored more than we have. Sure, we have been scoring in patches (17 of the goals have come in just three games and we failed miserably against Villa and Norwich to name but a few) but any way you put it there is some potential in this team. I’m not at all saying all is well (it clearly isn’t or at least hasn’t been, if it had we’d have of course been higher up the table) but we are not anywhere near total disaster either.

Truth be told, whilst I see where you are going regarding ManUre, it is somewhat misplaced in that they are currently top of the league and threatening to run away with it.

We can only imagine how much difference that £24m in our bank could have made were it still in the ManUre overdraft and we had The Rotter as well as OG, Santi, iPod, Theo and LJW in the side.

Although, as my grandmother always taught me, if ifs, buts and maybes were gold we would all be rich! The current situation seems to show that we are more than capable of scoring, at least when things “click” but we are still unable to defend with any real consistency, a lot like ManUre are themselves this season.

So, the difference between them and us is what exactly?

Again, I return to The Rotter. Without him this season, where would THEY actually be?!

Selling The Rotter to ManUre was the equivalent of scoring an own goal every game and, whilst on one side your stats show our improvement, they hide the reality of that terrible piece of business and how much it actually has to do with the distance in the league between us.

All told, we need to make some in-roads in January both in terms of the transfer market and by forming some kind of real consistency.

Lars@287: I usually agree with your analysis but TW@ 288 is spot on with his analysis of the true worth of The Rotter to ManU. He has won so many points for Old Purple Nose this season. Excellent points TW. A drink for all holics on Lars tab, of course.

Delia, were you wearing a Red Coat today? Thought I might have saw you on MOTD… 😛

Well I never got to watch the game, had to go meet one of my older sister at Marble Arch so she could return shoes -_-
Funnily enough whenever I have to go out mid-game or pre-game to meet an older sister or maybe even family in general and I end up missing a bit or all of it, we always win comfortably and that held true today, was just watching us (first!) on MOTD and although Jack’s suspect positioning and Sagna/Gibbs’ Fullback performances worried me, Theo’s MotM CF performance then his combination upfront with Giroud and both of their goals was a delight to see along with the Ox and Poldi’s finishes 🙂

To be honest, I’d say give him what he wants at this stage, we didn’t want to lose RvP but he made his position untenable & wanted far more than we could afford to offer, Theo’s position is very tenable and we can afford what he wants, if we wants to stay and Wenger wants him to stay, then Ante Up Arsenal Board.

Just in from a great day out at the Ems BUT how many of you were as worried as I was at 3-3 that the next goal was more likely to be in our net!

Dreadful defending from our 2 full-backs didn’t fill me with any confidence that we would come out on top but the name of the game is to score more goals than our opponents and we certainly did that in the end and with style, loved it! Fabulous!

Impec & TW: but part of what I am trying to say is that “look at the points he’s won them” is a tad too simplistic. They have scored almost exactly as many last season so far, putting RvP in there means far less time on the pitch for Welbeck and Hernandez and they both scored a few last season. By the same token you can’t just add 12 RvP goals to our tally because him being there would have meant less time (and less goals) on the pitch for Giroud and Theo. He’s been far too god for my liking for them, but I am far from convinced that him staying with us would have changed anything in particular in relation to our relative positions because our problems have not been and are not primarily in scoring goals – it’s about the lack of consistency and not conceding stupid goals and RvP would most likely have had little to no effect on that.

Wow..what a game matched by a good day. No 1 son & his wife current visitors. Necked a few bottles of Applefords pre pub. Down to the village local to watch the game. Some best West Country beer flowed..just like the game. The pub was jumping…the guv being a Geordie…and the atmosphere went hyper during that crazy second half. Surprisingly good amount of gooners frequent the fine establishment. After the game back home for a fine dinner washed down with Stellenbosch Shiraz and finished off with some fine Pomona (digestive).
The game itself displayed the best and worst of our current team performances, the full backs were particularly poor (Gibbs was giving his best impersonation of Glichy). Most important though was another 3 points in the bag plus the team kept going forward, even when the Geordies pulled a goal back each time we scored (first 3 goals).
A night cap on the bar for all ( courtesy of Lars tab of ourselves).

Its not luke the club fiddled while Feo burned. (You see what i did there, i hope).

They tried to open talks with hom but he resisted. Stip believing the shyte you read on espn.

Same with RVP. God i wish he stayed. But he was focused on leaving. At that point whst can you do … ?

Feo will make the final call. I believe (my crystal ball is in RARE form these days) the club will meet uis wage demands. If he wants to be a part of the club its done deal. If he seeks pastures anew- well so be it.
Ya bastard.

I think he will stay. Call me crazy but i gits me a feeling.

An unexpectedly cool manutd fan was with me in the pub today. He eas genuinely impressed (and a bit surprised by) our attack. OG is well and truly the man. Lets figure out how to ay with OG and Feo and fook me we will keep destroying g teams.

Initially I was in the “Theo is not worth 100k/wk camp” but he has worn me down at this point. Based on the present circumstances , I think the club should just pay him and let’s move forward. I’ve seen a tremendous improvement in his game over the past 2 years. Today in particular, I saw him exhibit some tremendous close controlled dribbling skills prior to his 3rd goal. I can’t recall seeing him exhibiting such close ball skills ever. It shows me that Theo is maturing and working to improve his game. He’s adding essential pieces to his locker, and thus, his best years might be ahead of him. We’ll have to pay more in the long run to replace him, so sign him up Arsene.

Well in cent for the 300.
The club should do all they can to get Theo to sign. To lose yet another player would demoralise some of the other players in the team plus many of the supporters..re-enforcing the notion we have become a selling club with insufficient ambition.

Uply, thanks. My problem with Theo is NOT his wage demands, my problem is his desire to play as a CF, our current formation only allows one CF and Theo is not yet ready to be that CF week in week out, i understand those who say we should change to 442, but considering the resources we have, playing 442 will be a total waste of our midfield resources.

Lars@293: Fair play to you sir. I understand your logic with regards to the stats but don’t necessarily agree. I think that your point that ManUre got one more goal for 24million is a tad too simplistic. However, that’s one of the limitations of statistics and its interpretation. The fact remains that The Rotter is a truly world class player, who unfortunately has contributed a lot more to those scums than a one goal difference. By the way, I do think he would have made a big difference this season as he’s a world class player and that’s what they do. Nevertheless, he’s gone and that’s that. Let’s drink to a good victory today and a great season ahead.

Perhaps im living in a dream world. But id like to believe that there are things pros strive for beyond money.

Being part of somehthing special. Builidng a legacy. Underfogs taking on the world, conventional wosdom and baffling all the so-called experts and critics. Becoming a club legend. I live in the dream world where men like Feo and Jack seek not only the cash but the glory and the reknown.

Naive. I know.

A drink on me sir. I always read your posts and hold you inhigh regard.

No problem at all and, yes, a mainstay of the house. For the record it is a fabulous travel-sickness remedy too, for any that suffer from it. ?Just put a little chunk of it in the back of the mouth and bite down and swallow the juices whenever the nausea appears and, bingo, almost instant relief.

Truth be told, that and Aloe Vera are about all I ever use, regardless of the illness!

As for the Feo thing, I think he wants to stay and the manager wants him to stay, but if you believe certain supposedly well connected journalists, even at this late stage the club have yet to enter formal contract discussions again since breaking them off with their August “final” offer.

If it’s true that all that is happening is training ground chats between Gazidis, Wenger and Theo, and that they only took place last week as a prelude to formal talks, it is a very odd situation to be in as a supposedly well run club.

The wage structure thing is such bollocks and a total smokescreen. Just about every vital player at the club has signed a long term deal in the last 12 months, including those who just arrived in the summer. The five Brits, Koscielny, Vermaelen all have and Ches was signed up until 2015 in 2010.

I can’t remember if Arteta was rewarded with a new deal this summer or not, but think he was given improved terms after impressing in his first season. Mertesacker arrived last summer on a four year deal, so he might be due one and that only leaves Sagna.

If the club were to give Theo £100k a week, I really don’t think we’d see all those players hammering on the door demanding money. The deal, financially, is easy to do. It is a no-brainer. Pay him what he wants or have to spend £10m+ on replacing him, plus wages on top. If the wage structure is SO important, give him a signing on fee like they did with Fabregas to get the deal done.

part 2 of 70th another boring day
Off to Thome Park for top 3 match Munster v Ulster guest of the Irish family
Ground reminded me of mini version of ours – large bar overflowing 1hour befofe the match then inside early having been warned it was a long way up
Psrfect seats in the centre but right under arch. Missus and I had to sfop for breathe its so high in the gods at least 50 metres from grounds
Match was poor as , according to Ulster neighbour it was their reserves, cant wait to FB my Ulster friend
Then post drinks in bar – Munster know how to drink
Back to house and as not in fit state to take a hammering took peek at our result surely not a rugby score
Hosts had recorded match for me so became late night viewing
Ba Ba Feo have you got some goals
Yessir yessir 3 bags full
How I stayed awake first half …….
2nd half – when is the feast going to start
By the end all I wanted was to watchMOTD and Hansen cringe but it had already started, so here I am beside granddaughter eating her morning apple and no acces to tv cos shes watching peppa pig

So i wake up this fine morning only to see that my goal was indeed an illusionary goal, well in Homer, atleast i was part of the build-up.

Trev, good to see you passed your fitness test and made it to the game, i’d be absolutely gutted for you if you had missed that eye-gasmic performance.

Ned, i’m not saying they shouldn’t play together, far from that, i’m saying Theo as a lone striker unbalances the team, so either we switch to 442 and play him alongside Giroud-which will be a waste of our midfield resources-or we stop playing him as our lone striker especially against teams that have big centre-backs.

Great result yesterday,theos finishing was excellent real coming of age stuff(god knows we waited long enough).also this lad coqulain is maturing into a v decent holding mf with a nice bit of bite,arsene is going to have a job keeping him happy.wind we shall play soon, funny enough the wind was interfering with my Internet conn last night 🙂 dublin is windy city at the mo.if u had ur shooting boots on u’d of been out of sight in both games ;)sajit il catch u soon for a game m8.

Agree n7 he has tapped up written all over him,cute as anything in interviews,giving noting away.what about ba ba black sheep anybody think it was odd him kissing the turf after both goals?or is that his regular celebration?

N7: agreed, and while I do want him to stay and always have, even when people couldn’t wait to get rid of him I can’t help but feel that he is putting in the extra effort partly to put himself in the shop window. It wouldn’t be the first time (Nasri comes to mind – half a decent season, gets tapped up by City and then has done pretty much bugger-all ever since except for the odd game here and there) a player works his socks off and then when he is rewarded with the big contract just sits back and can’t be arsed to work as hard anymore. Theo is a good player and I want to keep him, but we can’t break the bank to do it.

And as Catalan says, if he doesn’t want to sign there’s little that we can do.

N& – We’ve lost better players when we’ve had a better team to cope with it.

There comes a time, if you really do want to be the best club around, that you have to keep your better players. If the club gets tp where it keeps saying it wants to be, they will have to change their wage policy anyway. The best club in the world is not going to be able to pay lower end wages once they get to that position.

Lars I don’t think it’s going to break the bank to keep him,that’s the thing with us arsenal fans we worry to much bout finances,say we don’t give him 90k and he walks we got to buy someone to replace him with the money we get for him,i just want this bleeding of players to stop,money should not be a fans worry after all they give enough of there hard earned to watch the team,I understand that there’s noting we can do if he refuses to sign and reading between the lines looks to me that he’s been tapped up but I hope we not going to lose him Over 5 or 10 grand a week ala cole.

Morning all. Still only seen the motd coverage. I will watch the full game later on. As Trev said, the usual defensive lapses but this is not a day to reflect on negatives. 7 could easily have been a lot more.

All 3 of Theo’s goals were superbly taken. He will rightly receive praise for the third but for me his first was the most clinical. I have often thought that one of Theo’s biggest faults is his decision making. When he has had time is when it has often gone wrong. His first I felt showed how that part of his game has developed and matured.

Re his contract. I must say that I think if he leaves on a free it will be one of the biggest fuck ups we have ever made contract wise. Theo was brought to the club for a lot of money as a 16 year old. I will be the first to say that his form since then has been patchy at best. But Theo was bought as an investment, a project. There was talk of him leaving in the summer. Then that was put on hold.

The general feeling within the club must be one of that they consider Theo to be at least honourable. By that I mean that when he says that he wants to stay that he does actually want to stay. I would suggest that if he had given any indication that he wanted out that he would have been gone by now. Whatever you think of him, at least RVP came out and said that he was not signing a new contract.

Theo now holds all the aces re transfer negotiations. If he is going to play as a striker then a realistic consideration must be how much it would cost to replace him? I must say that my view is very much that all concerned should sit round the table now and thrash it out. I feel it needs to be sorted. If we allow it to drag then we will be entering very dangerous territory.

I think a big factor in the summer was the club were very aware of the fall out of losing RVP and Theo in one summer and so took a gamble ….. Same as RVP refusing to negotiate the same summer Cesc left

If Feo goes, he really is a cunt.
Yes it did look a bit like a ‘lap of honour’ at the end, but I very very much doubt he’ll leave in January so it makes no sense to see it that way.
A but gutted Giroud didn’t score the 8th, they could have had a scrap for the matchball.

I was impressed with him yesterday, just little things he didn’t seem able to do in recent times.
Of course there were also massive fuck-ups like a ridiculously wide shot when he had Poldi totally unmarked to his left, and Newcastle equalised shortly after.

Morning bath, wouldn’t have made it yesterday in this state. Seriously.

Agreed. Newcastle controlled the last 15 of the first half and could have scored again.

Hate to say it but Gibbs’ defending was awful. Didn’t even look behind him for Toon’s second goal, and had no idea there was a man, completely unmarked, waiting, leaning against the back post for a tap in.

Going forward, he was a lot more positive yesterday. Looks as though he could make a wide left midfielder, but I’m not at all convinced he is a defender.

I know you disagree, but I will do so with the utmost respect.

Great fun overall, and the second half display was excellent -apart from their goals.

Best thing about Theo is he helps keep Gervinho out of the starting line up. If we really are serious about spending some cash, lets off-load both those cunts and get a proper one, for that sort of money.

What potentially annoys me the most re Theo (and Dutch bloke for that matter)….

it´s not so much not having them playing for us – life goes on and AFC is bigger than any player, but it is that we spend years putting up with them when they are shit / injured, and then another team gets them all on top form and healthy.

If he goes now, after years of injuries and very little progression – and let’s not forget a hell of a lot of “Theee-ooo ing” amongst a bit of criticism – it will be yet another kick in the teeth to the fans and, probably, the only top team who would have been as patient with him.

Great game to watch….the atmosphere in my local was electric, partly because the landlord is a Geordie and he had a small but vociferous group of supporters with him…..thus encouraging the gooners to even louder support – all fuelled by some of the west country’s finest ales.
My local garage owners gim gim Giroud out blasted the whole pub on his own.
The full backs were defensively very poor and maybe missed a little of the BFG’s organisational skills. I still believe we need a strong DM to assist the defence better and break up attacks that hit us with power and speed. Mikael is a great player and professional but do not believe where he is currently playing is most appropate. Either Le Coq needs to be given more opportunities to show he is the man for that role or AW needs look elsewhere and get the chequebook out.
For TW it makes sense both football wise and financial wise to find the compromise figure that Theo will accept…replacing him will cost just as much in fees & salary. If he is “playing” with us and is definitely off to bigger bucks elsewhere, let the club show they have made a market value offer and he is off for pure greed, and stop this hypocritical love the club crap….he need to sign up or be outed.
Next match up is another opportunity for the team to shine….Santi at the Saints..with their defence he should be in heaven.